So, as I move on from the Midwest and I head out to Stanford GSB… I am now moving to California. The Guy and I shopped for houses in the greater Palo Alto area a week ago… and we found a great 2BR house, with a big yard and patio and two parking spaces that actually fits our budget! But despite the cheery news, the reality is my cost of living will be going up SIGNIFICANTLY. I currently pay $1000 a month in “rent” to the Guy (helps go toward his mortgage). That includes all utilities/parking etc. The rent for our new house will be $2650, which does not include utilities etc., which we can estimate at $150/mo. The Guy has advertised that he wants to / is able to pay more than me for our housing expenses. Let’s assume that means he will pay for all of the utilities. That brings me to $1325 in rent = a 33% increase in housing costs while I eliminate all income and take on debt. Hooray. We could go with a more economical apartment ($2200), rather than a house… but I think I am going to have a hard time convincing the Guy – he’s in love.
The Guy never likes it initially when I am his voice of budget reason (recall last night, when I forced him to go to the value grocery store vs. the convenient luxury grocery store), but later (when he realized the value store saved us $25) he appreciates it. So I will keep testing the boundaries of being prudent without losing all levels of desirability.
Showing posts with label emotional finance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label emotional finance. Show all posts
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
May Net Worth Update
A couple of things have put quite a large dent in my usual savings cushion – some pretty serious car repairs to the tune of $700 in April, wedding gifts $175, travel for those weddings, etc. and especially all of the expenses I’m attributing to “Business School Prep.” I have to buy a bike and order $330 of summer reading – mmm, who likes teaching themselves accounting! Not to mention the BLOWOUT weekend spent when my best friend came in from out of town. Worth it? Umm, I hope so.
Despite all that, my Net Worth ticked UP in May to $42,290 – up 6% or so! Mostly due to some upward swings in my 401(k), but I’ll take it. Just reminds me how important it is to actually track this once a month, even if you really don’t feel like it. Because how you FEEL about how you’re doing isn’t actually reflective of how you’re ACTUALLY doing.
The bad news is that I have not been contributing to my savings like I usually do these last few months, and am STILL not up to my goal of saving 3 months of expenses. Definitely a goal for next month.
Despite all that, my Net Worth ticked UP in May to $42,290 – up 6% or so! Mostly due to some upward swings in my 401(k), but I’ll take it. Just reminds me how important it is to actually track this once a month, even if you really don’t feel like it. Because how you FEEL about how you’re doing isn’t actually reflective of how you’re ACTUALLY doing.
The bad news is that I have not been contributing to my savings like I usually do these last few months, and am STILL not up to my goal of saving 3 months of expenses. Definitely a goal for next month.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Incomus Minimus Breakdownus Maximus
Sorry I have been absentee these last few weeks, but a LOT has been going on:
+ I officially said “No thanks, you can keep your $100K in tuition money” to my employer, thereby relinquishing myself from the three-year post-MBA time commitment I would’ve had to fulfill, and pretty much banishing myself from the grand virtual halls of personal finance bloggers.
+ My brother graduated from college and immediately re-enrolled in a Master’s program for Accounting. As part of his graduation gift, I sent him a little 10-page handwritten tutorial on personal finance principles and ideas
+ I finished up a class at a local community college and officially completed all of my pre-matriculation studies and requirements in Excel and Calculus. Stanford HAS to let me in now.
+ I recently decided to pursue a certificate in Public Management while I’m at school – with a focus on either Government or Socially Responsible Business. I’m super psyched about the program.
+ Took a budget roadtrip to Wisconsin – two nights, gas for a 15 passenger van, all meals, and a baseball game at Miller Park, all for the grand total of $150 per person. Amazing.
Other than being generally busy-ish, the only thing that’s keeping me from posting and thinking more about my finances? The soon-to-be income-free student reality is beginning to hit me. The mountain of debt I am about to absorb is overwhelming, and while I haven’t questioned the direction I’m heading or the decision I’ve made, the logistical “How am I going to do this?” keeps coming back to me. How will I manage my expenses, when I don’t have any assets or income? How will I organize my loan money so that I have the right amount at the right time, when I need it? I know a budget will be more important than ever – but how will I stick to it when I’m already SO far in the red? And the things I would normally want to write about seem more and more irrelevant – yes, would love to create a new goal to invest in a CD, but can’t even think about that right now. The Future of ETF’s? Who cares when I will barely be able to keep up the Roth.
I think deep down part of my nagging concern is even more esoteric than that… who can ever picture what the next stage of life is going to look like, and feel like? I was just as worried about this whole “real world” thing when I was graduating from college, and now hear I am running my life with complete measured control. I still remember the small rush of paying my own bills, taking care of my own oil changes and meal planning and everything else. And soon I will be embracing a whole new set of stages in one: the blur of two years of grad school and the new reality of student loans as one more line item on the Suzy comma Adult dossier.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Wigadoo my Spring Break, Please!
I love the idea of this website: Wigadoo is an online pledging site, only in the UK right now, although I think you can use some aspects from the US. The intent is essentially to reduce some of the risk of planning big (spendy) trips or outings with friends, because folks have pledged a certain amount to chip in, in advance. It also helps people think through the costs up front, so you don’t have the common phenomenon of folks signing up for plans only to reneg later when they realize they can’t really afford it. It really gets to the psychology of how people think about money, too – there’s not a moment I hate more than divvying up the restaurant check at the end of the evening. Because money is not a very friendly operation – it magnifies what’s mine, what’s yours, what I have, what you have (or don’t.) People like to reduce the process to absolute routine: plug this and pay that, no emotional wavering involved, or “I’ll get the appetizer ‘cause you spotted me money for parking two weeks ago.” It takes the emotional accounting out and turns it into just, accounting. I like that.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
On Privatizing Marriage...
Just finished “Nudge” – a libertarian tome on how to help people make better choices without restricting their freedom. One of their nudges was the proposal of privatizing marriage.
This would essentially turn what we know as marriage today into simply a civil union. Instead of getting a marriage license from the state, you would get a piece of paper licensing a civil union. Any contract beyond that would be dealt by another institution – the church. I presume that the majority of protestant churches would go on pronouncing folks man and wife as per usual. And your church would decide whether or not you can marry under their auspices, and certainly a whole marketplace of religious houses already exist so that practically any two people who desired would no longer have an obstacle.
What this would do would essentially eliminate the debate on gay marriage – the government would no longer be involved in or associated with the notion of “marriage” at all. They would have nullified the argument not by granting homosexual marriage rights, but by moving everyone down to the civil union level. No distinction between the benefits of being married and the benefits of having a civil union. It seems like human rights activists would have to be appeased by this – if all benefits are present, and all are equal, how can you take issue with that arrangement – no matter what you call it?
But if you simply find-and-replace “marriage” with “civil union,” are there any other ramificiations? Are marriages less consequential somehow without government sanction? i.e. Would we see any social changes that would affect our society for better or worse? Certainly, we could expect the amount of marriages overall to increase, accounting for all of the people who could now marry as a result. Would heterosexual marriages also increase? Would it all seem like “less of a big deal” such that we’d have high school sweethearts rushing out to get married, ahem a civil union, with the deep underlying knowledge, that they may have multiple marriages in their lifetime, creating a new social norm that makes it even less sacred than it already is? Would good friends across the globe apply for civil unions for the government benefits alone? Would our society be less stable if people saw not having a civil union with someone as “leaving money on the table.” Or is that argument inane simply because, nothing’s stopping anyone from doing that now, other than the fact that it says marriage instead of civil union on the document.
Or is the concept of privatizing marriage too idealized? When we privatized healthcare with the HMO system, government was still very much entangled, via a world of lobbyists vying for favorable legislation. What sort of additional “marriage markets” would crop up for various couples, and how would the government still be involved with the industry if not the endorsement of marriages.
I did find another interesting 2007 OpEd which brings in a lot of the history of marriage, but didn’t help me resolve any of these thoughts…. I’m intrigued by these libertarian folks…
This would essentially turn what we know as marriage today into simply a civil union. Instead of getting a marriage license from the state, you would get a piece of paper licensing a civil union. Any contract beyond that would be dealt by another institution – the church. I presume that the majority of protestant churches would go on pronouncing folks man and wife as per usual. And your church would decide whether or not you can marry under their auspices, and certainly a whole marketplace of religious houses already exist so that practically any two people who desired would no longer have an obstacle.
What this would do would essentially eliminate the debate on gay marriage – the government would no longer be involved in or associated with the notion of “marriage” at all. They would have nullified the argument not by granting homosexual marriage rights, but by moving everyone down to the civil union level. No distinction between the benefits of being married and the benefits of having a civil union. It seems like human rights activists would have to be appeased by this – if all benefits are present, and all are equal, how can you take issue with that arrangement – no matter what you call it?
But if you simply find-and-replace “marriage” with “civil union,” are there any other ramificiations? Are marriages less consequential somehow without government sanction? i.e. Would we see any social changes that would affect our society for better or worse? Certainly, we could expect the amount of marriages overall to increase, accounting for all of the people who could now marry as a result. Would heterosexual marriages also increase? Would it all seem like “less of a big deal” such that we’d have high school sweethearts rushing out to get married, ahem a civil union, with the deep underlying knowledge, that they may have multiple marriages in their lifetime, creating a new social norm that makes it even less sacred than it already is? Would good friends across the globe apply for civil unions for the government benefits alone? Would our society be less stable if people saw not having a civil union with someone as “leaving money on the table.” Or is that argument inane simply because, nothing’s stopping anyone from doing that now, other than the fact that it says marriage instead of civil union on the document.
Or is the concept of privatizing marriage too idealized? When we privatized healthcare with the HMO system, government was still very much entangled, via a world of lobbyists vying for favorable legislation. What sort of additional “marriage markets” would crop up for various couples, and how would the government still be involved with the industry if not the endorsement of marriages.
I did find another interesting 2007 OpEd which brings in a lot of the history of marriage, but didn’t help me resolve any of these thoughts…. I’m intrigued by these libertarian folks…
Saturday, January 3, 2009
The Mystique of Feminine Buying Power
After observing the crowds at the post-holiday sales, and doing a bit of scouring myself, I thought back to the fact I recently read in a Mintel report:
“Women represent 51% of the population but buy 80% of all products/services.”
The fact itself is certainly not all that shocking. All of the marketers and advertisers have certainly figured it out, and we see it reflected in commercials and malls all the time. The WHY behind this could be interesting. The reasons this statistic must be so are a mixture of ‘surface’ and ‘substance,’ as I see it. The surface reason is that women are - intentionally or unintentionally - often delegated the task of household management, and the majority of purchases (even in “men’s categories”) ultimately fall into the framework of keeping the household together and running smoothly. But I wonder if the reason of substance has something to do with psychological mindset.
This statistic actually contradicts the pop-psych principle that “men like to fix things” (i.e. just buy something to take care of it as quickly as possible), whereas “women like to maximize their solution” (i.e. not just “buy something,” but utilize all resources available to create the best possible solution, or buying the "best something.")
But perhaps, women are simply more likely to use shopping as therapy – and not just in the sense of buying some new shoes after a bad day at work – but as a salve to that urge to make things better. Even purchasing a service like an oil change is a disguised check for the to-do list of an accomplished modern-woman multi-tasker. What do you think? I feel a bit like Larry Summers toeing the waters here, so I would invite other perspectives. Are women more likely than men to rely on money to “smooth the edges of things” and create self-worth and comfort? Or should I gather my things and resign my post at a top university? :)
“Women represent 51% of the population but buy 80% of all products/services.”
The fact itself is certainly not all that shocking. All of the marketers and advertisers have certainly figured it out, and we see it reflected in commercials and malls all the time. The WHY behind this could be interesting. The reasons this statistic must be so are a mixture of ‘surface’ and ‘substance,’ as I see it. The surface reason is that women are - intentionally or unintentionally - often delegated the task of household management, and the majority of purchases (even in “men’s categories”) ultimately fall into the framework of keeping the household together and running smoothly. But I wonder if the reason of substance has something to do with psychological mindset.
This statistic actually contradicts the pop-psych principle that “men like to fix things” (i.e. just buy something to take care of it as quickly as possible), whereas “women like to maximize their solution” (i.e. not just “buy something,” but utilize all resources available to create the best possible solution, or buying the "best something.")
But perhaps, women are simply more likely to use shopping as therapy – and not just in the sense of buying some new shoes after a bad day at work – but as a salve to that urge to make things better. Even purchasing a service like an oil change is a disguised check for the to-do list of an accomplished modern-woman multi-tasker. What do you think? I feel a bit like Larry Summers toeing the waters here, so I would invite other perspectives. Are women more likely than men to rely on money to “smooth the edges of things” and create self-worth and comfort? Or should I gather my things and resign my post at a top university? :)
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Ending the Year with a Sigh (and not of Satisfaction)
As the year closes and most bloggers of any sort turn to indulgent predictions, recaps or lofty goals for the following year, I have to admit that I am feeling a bit of impatience at my own lack of progress. It seems I will probably have to change my already-declared 2009 goal because of all these forces out of my control, but I’m leaving it on the books for now… and simply declaring my very-human impatience at the lack of progress or sign of any pay-off at all for all this diligence. Maybe it’s that I haven’t been diligent enough (and don’t have it in me, at this stage in life, to be any more frugal than I already am) – or maybe it’s just that I can’t see that parallel track of “what might have been,” the non-blogging road not taken. Still, I am ending this calendar year, feeling a bit off-kilter.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Moving-In Landmines
So the Guy and I are thinking about moving in together.
Something that I have wanted and been ready for – for months and months. I never spend time in my place as it is. I get so frustrated shuttling clothes back and forth. And now I can help him pay his mortgage rather than spending a thousand dollars in rent for a place I sleep in once a month. All sounds good, right? But I know there are landmines I’m not seeing. Those of you who made this choice fairly recently – any warnings or advice before I sell all my stuff? The Guy and I definitely do not share the same sense of frugality, but we are very open with each other, and I think we are comfortable with some push and pull. He likes it when I help him grow and learn about his finances, and I know when to back off and just let him be him.
I think. Help… What are those moving-in landmines you don't see coming?
Something that I have wanted and been ready for – for months and months. I never spend time in my place as it is. I get so frustrated shuttling clothes back and forth. And now I can help him pay his mortgage rather than spending a thousand dollars in rent for a place I sleep in once a month. All sounds good, right? But I know there are landmines I’m not seeing. Those of you who made this choice fairly recently – any warnings or advice before I sell all my stuff? The Guy and I definitely do not share the same sense of frugality, but we are very open with each other, and I think we are comfortable with some push and pull. He likes it when I help him grow and learn about his finances, and I know when to back off and just let him be him.
I think. Help… What are those moving-in landmines you don't see coming?
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Financial "Attribution Error"
As mentioned previously, I recently went through some training at work through HR, and we spent a good deal of time talking about attribution error. This is the very human mistake we make when we are more permissive of our own behaviors and actions than we are of others. For instance, if I’m late to work, it’s because of the traffic that I ran into – completely out of my control! But if Jane is late to work, it’s because she’s careless and didn’t plan ahead. In other words, [from Wikipedia, people have an unjustified tendency to assume that a person's actions depend on what "kind" of person that person is rather than on the social and environmental forces influencing the person.]
I’ve heard a lot of people talk about the self-righteousness of some personal finance bloggers, and I think the idea of attribution error plays a definite role. I can more easily rationalize my spending habits or my “wants” vs. “needs,” and it’s a lot easier for me to “be objective” about others financial decisions. In reality, this objectivity might be more plainly called misjudgment as it’s probably not taking in all of the external factors you would if you were evaluating yourself.
I’ve heard a lot of people talk about the self-righteousness of some personal finance bloggers, and I think the idea of attribution error plays a definite role. I can more easily rationalize my spending habits or my “wants” vs. “needs,” and it’s a lot easier for me to “be objective” about others financial decisions. In reality, this objectivity might be more plainly called misjudgment as it’s probably not taking in all of the external factors you would if you were evaluating yourself.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
What It Feels Like...
The Guy gets a lot - I mean, a lot of magazines. And I've found myself going through them mindlessly on more than one occasion when he is puttering around getting ready in the morning. And I've found I really like the section in Esquire Magazine called “What it Feels Like.” Whereas Esquire might post on “What it Feels like to Pose for a Nude Photo” or “What it Feels like to Hit a Walk-Off Grand Slam” I would really like to host the personal finance edition. What it Feels like to pay off $10,000 in Credit Card Debt or What it Feels like to Miss out on an Experience because you were being too Frugal or What it Feels like to Finally Cash in on the Goal you’ve been saving for.
So I’m looking for guest bloggers to write about one of these topics – check in with me in the comments if you’d like to be featured in the new section! I’ll report back with the full list of topics to watch for.
So I’m looking for guest bloggers to write about one of these topics – check in with me in the comments if you’d like to be featured in the new section! I’ll report back with the full list of topics to watch for.
Monday, July 21, 2008
My Financial WANTS
I read an interesting piece in the blogosphere of late about emergency funds and how they create this negative psychology around anticipating catastrophes at every turn and create a poverty mentality. That got me thinking about the right way to set up your goals to motivate you to save positively, and not discourage you about where you are, where you want to be, and where you may never be. That’s depressing, whew. For my goals:
Emergency savings – $9,000 really is three months of my current salary, so that one is based on a pretty typical principal.
Business School Savings - $50,000. I realize this is actually way higher than I can actually achieve. I sincerely doubt I’ll be able to save this much before I go to school. However, this is the amount that I would feel really good about going into school to sustain a semblance of my lifestyle without taking on excessive amounts of debt. For me, it’s more important here to acknowledge the real total rather than set an achievable end goal. In the end, I will have to take on tons of loans to go to school. Everyone does it. (Sigh) I’ll do it too, and I’ll be okay. What is important for me in the meantime, is to set achievable short-term goals along the way to that total amount, i.e. upping the ante on my automatic savings each month.
Travel Goal - $2,500 This is the bare bones amount to have a real South American adventure. I honestly don’t think I can do it for less. So this is more about budget setting than anything else.
Wedding Goal - $? I can’t even think about how much I’m going to need for this right now. I should probably take it off, because I’m not even contributing to this yet, but it’s a reminder that I really should be saving if I want to pay for my own wedding and get married anytime in the next decade.
Those are the big ones – the NEEDS – that I’ve chosen to prioritize but I also think it’d be great to set a few other positive goals, to recognize that I’m trying to save, cover my needs, and be more frugal so that I can enjoy some of my WANTS. And as long as you save and budget for it, you can enjoy these fun things that cost money. So, a short list of my financial WANTS.
+ A Personal Trainer for a Year
+ A Dog, complete with Dog Walker for weekdays
+ A few more of my favorite magazine subscriptions (right now it’s just Vanity Fair)
Right now I’m not saving specifically for these, but once I’ve finished up with my travel goal, I’ll choose one of these as a positive savings goal to tack on. Any other strategies for keeping yourself on the positive side of saving?
Emergency savings – $9,000 really is three months of my current salary, so that one is based on a pretty typical principal.
Business School Savings - $50,000. I realize this is actually way higher than I can actually achieve. I sincerely doubt I’ll be able to save this much before I go to school. However, this is the amount that I would feel really good about going into school to sustain a semblance of my lifestyle without taking on excessive amounts of debt. For me, it’s more important here to acknowledge the real total rather than set an achievable end goal. In the end, I will have to take on tons of loans to go to school. Everyone does it. (Sigh) I’ll do it too, and I’ll be okay. What is important for me in the meantime, is to set achievable short-term goals along the way to that total amount, i.e. upping the ante on my automatic savings each month.
Travel Goal - $2,500 This is the bare bones amount to have a real South American adventure. I honestly don’t think I can do it for less. So this is more about budget setting than anything else.
Wedding Goal - $? I can’t even think about how much I’m going to need for this right now. I should probably take it off, because I’m not even contributing to this yet, but it’s a reminder that I really should be saving if I want to pay for my own wedding and get married anytime in the next decade.
Those are the big ones – the NEEDS – that I’ve chosen to prioritize but I also think it’d be great to set a few other positive goals, to recognize that I’m trying to save, cover my needs, and be more frugal so that I can enjoy some of my WANTS. And as long as you save and budget for it, you can enjoy these fun things that cost money. So, a short list of my financial WANTS.
+ A Personal Trainer for a Year
+ A Dog, complete with Dog Walker for weekdays
+ A few more of my favorite magazine subscriptions (right now it’s just Vanity Fair)
Right now I’m not saving specifically for these, but once I’ve finished up with my travel goal, I’ll choose one of these as a positive savings goal to tack on. Any other strategies for keeping yourself on the positive side of saving?
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Equities vs. Dollar Balance
Considering market downturns, other pf bloggers are encouraging me to think of my retirement assets as a certain number of shares rather than a constantly fluctuating (or diving) balance – hopefully this will help take the emotion out of re-looking at how I’m doing, when I have a long way to go before retirement. With that, I’ll start keeping this tracker in addition to my net worth tracking.
# of Equity Shares:
Company 401(k): 112
Company Stock (Given as extra incentive/gift): 10
Roth IRA: 107
Total: 229
# of Equity Shares:
Company 401(k): 112
Company Stock (Given as extra incentive/gift): 10
Roth IRA: 107
Total: 229
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Writing Down my Budget
So the name of this blog is quite deceiving. As it turns out, I don’t have a real budget yet. I have loose principles (that float around in my head) on how frugal I want to be and I definitely restrict my spending based on that. But as a newly professed pf guru, I know that sounds shady, so I have finally put pen to paper and gotten a REAL BUDGET calculated in a REAL EXCEL SPREADSHEET. Wow. Exhilaration. Here goes:
Rent & Utilities: 1,000
Food – Groceries: 150
Food & Drink – Out: 125
Entertainment & Fun: 50
Clothes etc.: 100
Gas: 100
Target-like expenses: 50
TOTAL: 1,575
This doesn’t include my automatic withdrawals and is loosely based on Mint.com reports, but at the end of April I will evaluate all of the spending on my credit card and see how realistic this might be. It’s definitely exciting to feel more in control of my expenses, and I’m determined to be realistic with what I really am going to spend so I won’t get discouraged. I think that’s been the main budget downfall in the past. Now I’m just going to be honest with myself, and work to get it where I need it to be gradually, over time.
Rent & Utilities: 1,000
Food – Groceries: 150
Food & Drink – Out: 125
Entertainment & Fun: 50
Clothes etc.: 100
Gas: 100
Target-like expenses: 50
TOTAL: 1,575
This doesn’t include my automatic withdrawals and is loosely based on Mint.com reports, but at the end of April I will evaluate all of the spending on my credit card and see how realistic this might be. It’s definitely exciting to feel more in control of my expenses, and I’m determined to be realistic with what I really am going to spend so I won’t get discouraged. I think that’s been the main budget downfall in the past. Now I’m just going to be honest with myself, and work to get it where I need it to be gradually, over time.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Sensitive about Frugality
The other day I did a bad thing. I got hyper-sensitive about being perceived as “frugal” because I write this blog. I don’t want to do that. The point of doing this is to be disciplined enough so that I can be absolutely extravagant about things that really matter to me. The point is to get control and know what you’re doing. To fight apathy and ignorance and all things VH1 trash TV. So there. And I will not feel like a Scrooge because of it. Lots of other bloggers depate the wisely frugal vs. lamely cheap debate, so I know I'm not alone. I like Madame X's debate here and her definition - being frugal involves things you do which only affect you, while being cheap brings others into the equation. When others are involved, I am always generous. And I don't want to feel cheap for being frugal solo.
Anywho, now I'm gearing up for a long Saturday of writing at my local coffee shop...
Also, added a photo of me and my best friend from when I was out visiting her in San Francisco a few weeks ago. We had decided to have a dance party in her apartment instead of going out that night.
Anywho, now I'm gearing up for a long Saturday of writing at my local coffee shop...
Also, added a photo of me and my best friend from when I was out visiting her in San Francisco a few weeks ago. We had decided to have a dance party in her apartment instead of going out that night.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Tricky Tactics
You know how it goes when you have one of those blow out weekends? You know, an unexpected expense comes up on a day you had already planned a big dinner, or a purchase you had planned ends up being double, and then next thing you know you’re uttering those deadly “what the hell, I’ve already blown it” words in your head and you find yourself at Macy’s or at the premium gourmet grocery store throwing things into your cart with abandon. Yeah, the worst. You feel defeated, so you assume the “why not” mentality. So I’ve been trying to think of a good tactic for when I get into those temporary spending ruts. I think the main thing is to get back in the right frame of mind. If you can do one small belt-tightening thing after a blow-out day or weekend, it might help swing the scale and remind you of the journey you’re on, and why you’re doing it. Like, maybe skip the wine at the big dinner or order a less expensive entrée. Or transfer more money into your savings.
On another note, the Guy invited me to a wedding in Chicago about a month from now, which is kind of a big deal. This is the first time I’ll be meeting all of his real friends, and I want to make a really good impression. His last girlfriend was really beautiful, and in contrast, I am… really smart. I’ve heard that his friends and family still refer to me only as the name of the Ivy league college I attended. As in, “So you’re still with Ivy girl, huh?” When you hear “IVY” you do not think beautiful. So I know I will want to go shopping and get a new dress (new shoes, jewelry, etc.) for the weekend. So I’ll try to tighten my belt even more between now and then to save up. Eating out is an easy one, so that’s probably where I’ll focus. Although it will be hard since I’m going to San Francisco this weekend to visit my best friend.
But the way I see it, this whole personal finance road to wealth is a lifelong marathon, not a sprint through your twenties. It’s all about getting smart and forming the right habits, not about one weekend where you mess up or even one event where you really need to splurge.
On another note, the Guy invited me to a wedding in Chicago about a month from now, which is kind of a big deal. This is the first time I’ll be meeting all of his real friends, and I want to make a really good impression. His last girlfriend was really beautiful, and in contrast, I am… really smart. I’ve heard that his friends and family still refer to me only as the name of the Ivy league college I attended. As in, “So you’re still with Ivy girl, huh?” When you hear “IVY” you do not think beautiful. So I know I will want to go shopping and get a new dress (new shoes, jewelry, etc.) for the weekend. So I’ll try to tighten my belt even more between now and then to save up. Eating out is an easy one, so that’s probably where I’ll focus. Although it will be hard since I’m going to San Francisco this weekend to visit my best friend.
But the way I see it, this whole personal finance road to wealth is a lifelong marathon, not a sprint through your twenties. It’s all about getting smart and forming the right habits, not about one weekend where you mess up or even one event where you really need to splurge.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Give Yourself a Break.
Happy weekend. Just a lovely Sunday afternoon settling in on my couch, admiring the lovely v-day roses from the Guy, and fully absorbing the Times & the Strib. Nothing pertinent to blog about from those two lovely papers today. But all in all, I have a feeling of contentment when it comes to where I am today. Read Living Almost Large’s post about not feeling overwhelmed, and this really resonates.
Started talking to the Guy a lot more about my finances. I was griping a bit about how much I spend, and he reminded me to put things in perspective – that I spent a fraction of what he (and many of my peers) did, and that I wasn’t doing all that bad. (And while yes, we have entirely different priorities when it comes to money, this was encouraging.)
Sometimes I’m bummed that I still haven’t been able to curb my spending habits to the levels of some of you more frugal pf bloggers out there. But hey, I’ve gotten my credit card balance down below $1000 again, which feels really nice. I’m definitely on target to beat my goal of balance-free by 4/8. At the end of the day, money is a really emotional subject – I think that’s partially why I blog about it – and it helps to give yourself a pat on the back every now and again.
Started talking to the Guy a lot more about my finances. I was griping a bit about how much I spend, and he reminded me to put things in perspective – that I spent a fraction of what he (and many of my peers) did, and that I wasn’t doing all that bad. (And while yes, we have entirely different priorities when it comes to money, this was encouraging.)
Sometimes I’m bummed that I still haven’t been able to curb my spending habits to the levels of some of you more frugal pf bloggers out there. But hey, I’ve gotten my credit card balance down below $1000 again, which feels really nice. I’m definitely on target to beat my goal of balance-free by 4/8. At the end of the day, money is a really emotional subject – I think that’s partially why I blog about it – and it helps to give yourself a pat on the back every now and again.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Questions to Ask Yourself
Over the weekend, I came across the show The Millionaire Inside, and started watching "debt confessions" on late-night TV... in my near slumber-stupor, the moderator of the program seemed unreasonably harsh. They kept posing these impossible questions: "What is more important to you - your home or your business? What is more important to you - changing jobs to something you love or getting married?" Insane!
Glad I'm not at the point where I need to be answering such questions. However, it does raise the all important question of choices and priorities in my own financial life. It's nice to phrase this as a tradeoff. Too often I make choices by assuming that I have to do something, because it's part of me. For instance, I'm not going to stop all of my weekend social activity to save money, because I'm in my early twenties. It would be foolish for me to be a hermit until I have reached 100% of my financial goals, because then I'll be in my early forties... and it's less fun to dance on the bar then.
However, I can start posing the priorities/choices question: what is more important to me now? Having 3 more drinks? Or being able to pay off $30 more of my credit card? Taking cabs all over town? Or being a little closer to having my emergency fund whole? Or even questions among questions: going out to a concert or being able to eat out once more this month? I think I'm going to focus on making better choices within my priorities (being social, but practicing some good cost avoidance while I'm out there!)
Glad I'm not at the point where I need to be answering such questions. However, it does raise the all important question of choices and priorities in my own financial life. It's nice to phrase this as a tradeoff. Too often I make choices by assuming that I have to do something, because it's part of me. For instance, I'm not going to stop all of my weekend social activity to save money, because I'm in my early twenties. It would be foolish for me to be a hermit until I have reached 100% of my financial goals, because then I'll be in my early forties... and it's less fun to dance on the bar then.
However, I can start posing the priorities/choices question: what is more important to me now? Having 3 more drinks? Or being able to pay off $30 more of my credit card? Taking cabs all over town? Or being a little closer to having my emergency fund whole? Or even questions among questions: going out to a concert or being able to eat out once more this month? I think I'm going to focus on making better choices within my priorities (being social, but practicing some good cost avoidance while I'm out there!)
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